Garry Schmeelk grew up in the Far Rockaway neighborhood of New York City. He began his twenty year basketball career playing for a local team called the Big Atlantics who grew into one of the best independent teams in the Metropolitan New York area. In the fall of 1911, Schmeelk enrolled at nearby St. John’s University in Brooklyn where he briefly played college basketball.  In January of 1912, Schmeelk left school to join the New York Nationals, a professional basketball team that was embarking on the first of four historic barnstorming trips to  the mid-west. Over the next  four years, the Nationals, dazzled fans in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Minnesota and Wisconsin and on the final trip,  California,  with a level of skill  they had never been witnessed before.  Schmeelk emerged as the star of the team because he was a talented athlete who also possessed a likable personality that made made him extremely popular with fans and fellow players alike. By the 1915-16 season, when he led the Interstate League in scoring with 9.3 points per game, Schmeelk had become one of the biggest stars in pro basketball.  The following year, Schmeelk signed as player-coach with  Pittston in the Pennsylvania State League  where he began a successful association with Bucky Harris, the longtime  major league baseball manager who was a also a very capable basketball  player. During his four seasons in Pittston, Schmeelk was perennially among the league’s top scorers. In 1917-18, Pittston captured the PSL championship and during the  1920-21 season, Schmeelk led Pittston to  the first-half championship, but lost the season title in the playoffs. Despite his stocky build, Schmeelk moved well during the prime years of his career. In later seasons, when he ballooned to as much as 225 pounds, Schmeelk used his bulk to his advantage with bull-like charges to the basket. In 1921, Schmeelk returned to New York to play for MacDowell in the new Metropolitan League. Both he and the team enjoyed fine seasons. In 1923-24, Schmeelk enjoyed success as player-coach of the Glens Falls entry in the New York State League. His team won the the championship series and Schmeelk trailed only Benny Borgmann as an individual scorer. In 1925, Schmeelk was named player-coach of the Brooklyn Arcadians in the new American Basketball League. His team won the first-half of the split-season, but lost to Cleveland in the championship series. Schmeelk was fired after Brooklyn began the 1926-27 season with five straight defeats. He was then hired by George Halas to run his floundering Chicago team, but Schmeelk could not turn the situation around and was fired again at the end of the season.

 

GARRY SCHMEELK		Height:	5:11		Weight:		205		College:		St.John’s(NY)’12
Garrett  Eldert Schmeelk		Born:    Mar 23, 1891			Died: Oct 17, 1941				Hometown:		Rockaway Beach, NY
			REGULAR SEASON RECORD
Year	Team	League	GA	FGM	FTM	FTA	PCT.	AST	PTS	AVG
1907-08	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1908-09	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1909-10	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1910-11	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1910-11	Brooklyn Loughlin Lyceum	Indep
1911-12	St.John’s	College	5	11	25				47	9.4
1911-12	New York Nationals	Indep
1912-13	Utica	NYSL	12	35	15				85	7.1
1912-13	Far Rockaway Big Atlantics	Indep
1912-13	New York Nationals	Indep
1913-14	Paterson	NYSL	61	143	100				386	6.3
1913-14	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1913-14	New York Nationals	Indep
1914-15	Paterson	NYSL	9	13	10				36	4.0
1914-15	New York Nationals	Indep
1914-15	Far Rockaway Beach  Big Atlantics	Indep
1914-15	Brooklyn Sisco Five	Indep
1915-16	Brooklyn	IBL	29	104	62				270	9.3
1915-16	Schenectady	NYSL	3	6	9				21	7.0
1915-16	Jasper	EBL	10	20	47	90	.522	5	87	8.7
1915-16	Bridgeport Blue Ribbons	Indep
191516	Danbury Wooser AAC	Indep
1916-17	Pittston	PSL	40	102	109			46	313	7.8
1916-17	Paterson	IBL	1	1	2				4	4.0
1916-17	Schenectady	NYSL	1	6	2				14	14.0
1917-18	Pittston	PSL	37	93	69			32	255	6.9
1917-18	Bridgeport–Ansonia	CSL	12	41	3				85	7.1
1918-19	US Navy	Military Service
1918-19	Staten Island Downey Shipyard	Indep
1919-20	Pittston	PSL	45	97	62	209	.297	32	256	5.7
1919-20	Schenectady	NYSL	10	26	15				67	6.7
1919-20	Ansonia–Brooklyn	IBL	5	17	11				45	9.0
1919-20	Germnantown	EBL	6	7	10	17	.588	3	24	4.0
1919-20	Brooklyn Van& Schenck	Indep
1920-21	Pittston	PSL	34	33	73				139	4.1
1920-21	Coatesville	EBL	7	10	14	19	.737	4	34	4.9
1920-21	Brooklyn Arcadians	Indep
1920-21	Brooklyn Pros	Indep
1920-21	New York Nationals	Indep
1921-22	Coatesville–Scranton–New York	EBL	15	54	33	58	.569	14	141	9.4
1921-22	New York MacDowell	MBL	16	36	43				115	7.2
1921-22	Utica–Gloversville	NYSL	16	38	33				109	6.8
1921-22	Worcester	IL	5	13	8				34	6.8
1922-23	Reading	EBL	8	30	16	29	.552	13	76	9.5
1922-23	Elizabeth	MBL	16	60	37				157	9.8
1923-24	Yonkers	MBL	2	3	3				9	4.5
1923-24	Glens Falls	NYSL	18	66	49				181	10.1
1924-25	Washington Palace-Five	Indep
1925-26	Brooklyn	ABL	15	18	12				48	3.2
1926-27	Brooklyn–Chicago	ABL	14	15	17				47	3.4
	Major League Totals		447	1137	864				3138	7.0
				PLAYOFF RECORD
Year	Team	League	GA	FGM	FTM	FTA	PCT.	AST	PTS	AVG
1917-18	Pittston	PSL	4	9	1				19	4.8
1920-21	Pittston	PSL	2	0	2				2	1.0
1922-23	Elizabeth	MBL	3	13	5				31	10.3
1923-24	Glens Falls	NYSL	5	15	16				46	9.2
1925-26	Brooklyn	ABL	2	1	1				3	1.5
	Major League Totals		16	38	25				101	6.3
.

 

RED CONATY signed his first pro contract in late January of 1922, a few weeks before his eighteenth birthday. He joined the Ware, Massachusetts team in the Interstate League were he created an immediate sensation by leading all scorers during the second half of the season. The teenager was quickly signed to a contract for the 1922-23 seasons, with his hometown Brooklyn Visitation. It soon became apparent that Conaty was not going to duplicate the his first season scoring heroics in the tougher Metropolitan League. While Conaty never did become a top-ten scorer again, he was in fact a talented and valuable addition to the Visitation who were just entering their most successful years. He was agile, fast, handled the ball well and was equally comfortable playing forward or guard. During his six seasons with the Visitation, the team won three championships.  At the beginning of the 1930-31 season, Conaty was a victim of a new America Basketball League  rule that forced every team to add at least two rookies to their roster. Conaty, still in his prime, lost his job to his younger brother, Frank. Conaty continued to play professionally for another five seasons, but never recaptured the spirit of his great days with the Visitation.

 

RED CONATY		Height:	5:11		Weight:		160		College:		None
John Francis Conaty		Born:  Feb 12, 1904			Died:  May 27, 1979				Hometown:		Brooklyn, NY
Brother of Edward and Frank Conaty			REGULAR SEASON RECORD
Year	Team	League	GA	FGM	FTM	FTA	PCT.	AST	PTS	AVG
1920-21	Brooklyn Prospect Big Five	Indep
1921-22	Brooklyn Whirlwinds	Indep
1921-22	Ware	IL	9	34	13				81	9.0
1922-23	Brooklyn Visitation	MBL	35	60	45				165	4.7
1922-23	Schenectady	NYSL	1	2	1				5	5.0
1923-24	Brooklyn Visitation	MBL	29	57	33				147	5.1
1923-24	Gloversville	NYSL	6	15	4				34	5.7
1924-25	Brooklyn	MBL	19	31	22				84	4.4
1924-25	Philadelphia Kayoula	PBL	9	11	13	31	.419	9	35	3.9
1924-25	Washington Palace-Five	Indep
1925-26	Washington–Brooklyn	ABL	25	63	36				162	6.5
1926-27	Brooklyn	NLN	25	64	45				173	6.9
1926-27	Brooklyn	MBL	10	38	12				88	8.8
1927-28	Brooklyn–Kingston	MBL	6	10	6				26	4.3
1927-28	Washington/Brooklyn	ABL	47	148	28				324	6.9
1928-29	Brooklyn	ABL	39	107	37				251	6.4
1929-30	Brooklyn	ABL	53	109	40				258	4.9
1930-31	Paterson	ABL	11	8	5				21	1.9
1930-31	Dunmore	PSL	9	23	32				78	8.7
1931-32	Bridgeton	EBL	5	8	9				25	5.0
1931-32	Carbondale	PSL	11	54	12				120	10.9
1931-32	Brooklyn Americans	Indep
1932-33	Brooklyn Hill House/Broooklyn Americans–Bronx	MBL	31	40	18				98	3.2
1932-33	Carbondale-Pittston	PSL	13	28	27				83	6.4
1933-34	Newark	ABL	7	5	0				10	1.4
1933-34	Pittston	PSL	24	50	39				139	5.8
1934-35	Newark–Brooklyn	ABL	15	13	3				29	1.9
	Major League Totals		382	823	370				2016	5.3
				PLAYOFF RECORD
Year	Team	League	GA	FGM	FTM	FTA	PCT.	AST	PTS	AVG
1925-26	Paterson	MBL	3	4	6				14	4.7
1926-27	Brooklyn	MBL	3	12	5				29	9.7
1930-31	Bridgeton	TSL	1	4	2				10	10.0
1931-32	Carbondale	PSL	5	11	19				41	8.2
1932-33	Pittston	PSL	5	5	14				24	4.8
1933-34	Pittston	PSL	2	3	2				8	4.0
	Major League Totals		6	16	11				43	7.2